November 16, 2014

Hey guys! I hope you are at that point on a Sunday where the chores are done, your bedroom is clear, and outfits are washed and dried ready for the week ahead. Or if you have only just emerged from your bed of hangover food, smudged eyeliner pillows and regrettable texts, then that's even better! I've had a mixed weekend of eventful vs. relaxing as I went to 1xtra Live last night with my bestie Melissa, which was seriously fun. We had a quick cocktail before heading to the arena where loads of acts took to the stage for bitesize sets, including Lethal B, Rozay himself: Mr Rick Ross, and legendary Mary J Blige, who was a total pro to close the show, wearing a leather crop top with jeans, looking all sorts of sassy. It was a seated show, probably due to safety, but the crowd was really hyped and a favourite part of gigs for me is seeing everyone turning it up a notch and looking great. For my fave look, I saw a really cute, structured circle skirt, almost prom style, in white with a matching mini cropped bralette and white sandals. Annoying I didn't get chance to snap my own outfit even for Instagram, but hopefully I'll end up wearing it again anyway. I wore Joni Jeans and a silky Zara plunge slip top, with laced heels. Still liking wearing jeans out at night!

I've just changed my nails but these were my Milan holiday talons, and this colour is a serious challenger for my upcoming December nails. It's Barry M Almond from nailpolish.co.uk, and what a beautiful milky lilac it is! Very luxe, grey toned, but somehow it has the depth to suit gold as well as silver, and especially rose gold. I'm hoping to find a rose gold crop top to create my Christmas outfits around, and I have my work party and a friend's legendary birthday where all my friends gather each year, plus NYE, although I have no idea what will happen for that night! Other nail colours I'm considering are a super bright electric blue with a matte top coat, or going for the classic Christmassy gold metallics. Any ideas? Does anyone else give this as much thought as me?!

November 14, 2014

I've started to realise that a Monday to Friday life means it's easiest to choose favourite staples and repeat those for five days, whether that's the same easy-to-prepare lunch, a go-to selection of outfits, or in this case, sets of underwear that suit every sheer shirt, peplum top and roll neck jumper, which is what my work wear wardrobe usually is. Nothing slows you down more in the morning than realising you have serious VPL in your black high waisted trousers, or can see your bright pink bra through your blouse! Without being too TMI, I know exactly which styles of underwear to buy that will suit all of my wardrobe, while still feeling fabulous to wear. This is a different story on the weekend, when I like to transform into someone unrecognisable (or I'd like to think so!) and spend ages getting ready, wearing my favourite things.

So while sitting at my desk for over eight hours, I want undies that give super comfort but are also super cute. Luckily for me, I don't need much support-wise or necessarily need hefty straps or a strong wire. I worked in a lingerie department once upon a time at Uni and know the ins and outs of the underwear world, but love the current trend for sweet triangle, cotton bras.

I found myself reblogging photos of Calvin Klein sets now that they are having a moment, and felt I needed one in my life as a rare treat. I've heard of people wearing sequined socks under their suits so they could keep their sense of style while obeying an office dress code; it's almost like knowing the very core of you is your true self, even if your exterior shows a standard shirt and trousers. I browsed all sorts of sites, discovering the current season set is the bralette top and classic shorts. Net-a-porter had the best deal and free gift wrapping, so I received my set beautifully boxed. The top looks like it comes up really small, but they totally elude that designer vibe, slightly minimising the high price. Imagine having a whole range of these and wearing them every day? I have a problem with saving my expensive makeup and accessories for special occasions that never happen, and don't let myself push the boat out on an average day. However, that's what shopping is all about: to make you feel fantastic constantly, merging new things with your daily style! These will begin as a special wear set, but the dream is that this is everyday wear.

November 09, 2014

Hey guys, happy Sunday! My last post was on Monday and I thought I would have chance in the mornings to blog, but I found getting to work earlier just means you generally begin work earlier! I will rethink that one. In the meantime I've recently been coveting my Autumn wardrobe, which I have supplemented with a camel coat from Mango, some new work trousers from Zara, I have stocked up on brown lip liners, and I have touched up my hair. Going back to my almost natural hair colour before the summer after two years of bright, box-dye red was a big deal in the sense the colour was SO different, but not a huge change as it is the colour I was for most of my life. The definition of going 'back to my roots' if you will!

However I wanted to go much more blonde and matte, feeling that I had moved on from my natural ginger but still fancy taking control of my hair and being whichever colour I fancy right now. The blonde highlights I have had for the past few months have let me experiment with different colours and looks, while still being warm toned and golden. It's been fab!

I was so surprised and impressed that the salon I carefully chose after three different consultations, Lisa Shepherd, could miraculously remove all of the layers and layers of dye and at such a fantastic price, that it's been amazing to be free of the red and become a strawberry blonde for so many reasons...

1. Ditching the green roots: When ginger roots grow through, they look like a gungy, swamp green next to dark red! I would do my roots once a month as they grow fast, and add dye to the rest of my hair for a few minutes to keep the red bright, but this meant I burned the top selection of my hair by over-dying, and it became frizzy and damaged.

2. The first rule of red hair dye is not to wash it out with steaming hot water. Luke warm showers are no fun!!

3. Bleached hair means the colour can't wash out, so your colour is there for the long run! I experimented with purple shampoos to keep the colour bright, but I like a warmer tone so did not mind any effects.

4. I can wear a red lip! I found this very hard with red hair and leaned towards vampy shades. Now I am not afraid of those pillar box reds!

5. The more I dyed my hair red, the more the darker colour stuck and the red dye washed out each time. As my hair got darker, my face looked paler! Now my pale completion is not comparable to a grey corpse and is the standard English fair tone, and a light fake tan goes a long way. To think I used to use the dark shade of St. Moriz! Now that seems very extreme.

Over the summer my roots had grown a good four inches, but they blended so well with the colour I had that I postponed dying it again for months until Lisa Shepherd contacted me about their new Express Color Bar. I've referred so many friends to them (and found out some of my friends already went there regularly!) that I was delighted to return and retell how much I love my restored hair, and check out this new speciality.

The bar is a fantastic idea, and there is no doubt these will be popping up everywhere soon. On offer is a selection of speedy 1-hour services from highlights to a root touch-up to an all over gloss boost. The concept is the salon dyes and washed, and then you dry, skipping off back to work or straight on a night out. The drying stations are prepped with an endless supply of luxury hair products, top notch tools and brushes galore, and you can take as long as you like to dry and primp your style. There is no persuasion of a cut, no overpriced advice, just an essential top up to tick over your style until next time, and prices are £15 - £30!

I had Brighter Lights, described as six highlights for blondes ready for a refresh, but not wanting the regular damage of an all over dying session. My parting was spruced up with perfectly placed highlights at the top layers of my hair, leaving my four-month-roots as a thing of the past. You only see the top of my hair, so it's all I need! This is such a cost effective way to maintain a salon style and not feel pressured into getting the full whack each time you see your hairdresser. Whenever my hair is salon blow-dried, it ends up straight and wispy, and curls drop out. While I would like these sleek blow-dry skills, it's just not how I wear my hair usually, so it was a dream to dry my hair just how I liked it too.

The salon has different sections with a spacious waiting area, where you can sit with your roots developing and help yourself to any kind of refreshment, and dry your hair at the giant dressing tables, feeling totally relaxed and private. When I went there earlier this year, it felt as equally laid back yet very feminine and fabulous, and again my stylist Chloe was lovely and listens carefully to the results you are hoping for. I won't be hesitating to sample the bar again because it's so purse friendly and suits the girl on the go to a T. Do let me know if you pop in yourself!

November 03, 2014

Hi guys! Happy Monday. Due to leaf fall, my trains have been cut by two thirds in the morning and so here I am at work half an hour early! I'm not sure if this is better than having to change trains or try to squeeze on during sardine season, but it's much better than being late. I'm thinking I'll spend the first free half an hour of the day blogging! I've actually picked this post up again this evening to finish so yay to me for completing Monday!

Maybe you know by now I'm a Tumblr obsessive and I find reblogging pictures that I love so satisfying. Scrolling through gorgeous images is definitely my guilty pleasure rolled, and I'll only reblog pictures of combinations or looks I haven't quite seen before. I feel like these will either sink into my wardrobe via spiritual osmosis or if I have an event/gig/night out approaching, I'll look towards my selection and choose the details I want to emulate.

So here is my November mood board and I'm feeling very moody shall we say. Just working on streamlining my life, pinpointing anything that makes me stressed/broke/down and saying oh no you don't! I don't get much joy out of candles, drinking teas or the other things that look like they might be nice from reading blogs and watching evening routine videos. I just refuse to do anything homely as I don't want to settle down in any sense any time soon, and so I spend time daydreaming about how I can move forward, change and evolve. I'm not the best at taking photos and documenting all of my buys and outfits but I'll aim to get a chance to try out all of my inspiration ideas this month and show you.

You know I finally got some ripped jeans but are they ripped enough?! I'm not so sure! I dug out some of my old jeans but they are all dark, solid denim and I think rips look better on washed out jeans. I'm wanting a boyfriend fit style that are tight at the top and high waisted, but trying on jeans is definitely a commitment! Next time I go shopping I might wear a skirt or leggings and make sure to try on a few pairs out of curiosity. Going shopping or browsing is one of the few times I get to wear my own clothes though!

Hair-wise I'm into really curly, textured hair with a heavy flipped over parting, or I really want to try the total opposite of something sleek and pushed back. Straight hair just doesn't suit me though so maybe I need to pin some bits behind my ears, or try straightening my hair and styling it up into plaits. Of all the double french braid styles floating around at the moment, where each plait starts right at the front of the head and is then tight against your neck, I like the ones above that look thick and chunky. I might have too many colours in my hair at the moment for the roots to be so exposed, so I may get one of my friends to do a side braid for me. I really liked my blue ends that I sprayed for Milan and I picked up some hair dyes in Poudland, so watch this space. Are Kylie-esque ends overdone? Oh well!

As for nails, I have a ballet shoe shape at the moment and it feels like such a fresh change from a fair few months of pointed, stiletto nails. I like the matte pink in the photo above; almost sickly sweet.

My lace up Zara-via-Choies heels are still my favourites but the quality isn't top notch so they aren't my most comfy to wear, and have loosened a little with wear. I'm ever so patiently waiting for this Missguided nude lace up pair to come back into stock in a size 6 (size up - my usual 5s didn't fit me) and maybe I'll cave and get the black pair if they never return. Something about lace up shoes add so much to an outfit and look amazing with an androgynous piece or an awkward length. I only see pencil skirts in prim lengths so my eyeballs are peels of a Kim K maxi length or a definite calf length. Also, am I ready to wear a sports bra as a top? I don't think I can pull off my Calvin K undies in public, but I'll figure something out!

Which trends are you eyeing up for November? Are there any you would think I'd like? I managed to grab tickets to 1xtra Live which should be such a girlie laugh of lots of dancing and people watching as I bet the crowd will be turning out some serious style, and I've added a Current Listening tab to my sidebar too <---- Then I want to get back into the swing of lots of sleep/water/gym to be ready for Christmas fun. I have a gym membership through work so technically all of those things are free too! Or I'll just come home at night and Tumblr away :)

October 27, 2014

Hi guys, little time no speak! I took these photos (well, my brother did) last week and I don't usually like racking up posts, but I am indeed still wearing this whole outfit whenever I am free. Come the weekend, I actually feel like a different person. It could be all psychological or due to office bathroom lighting, but I almost feel like I look totally different by Saturday morning. I don't splash out on the weekend, but I do feel like I look a million bucks better! Weekend millionaire indeed. Office wear is just never going to be my thing.

This outfit is my AW staple because of the two key elements:

1. The khaki shirt - There's something about khaki green that fits so well with all of the camel colours this season but is still a little beat up and boyish. Teaming a military shirt with curve-hugging jeans, a pencil skirt or a slick bun creates a contrast that adds a sexy vibe to normcore; the whole subtle, classic, solid trend of the moment. This New Look shirt has just enough of a casual vibe due to the material but the slim fit and neat pockets can keep it sophisticated.

2. The ripped skinnies - I've been eyeing my favourite high waisted jeans sitting in my wardrobe and contemplating the scissors. But once you chop, there is no going back and I just could not bring myself to! So I invested in the Topshop Jamie Jean as my winter weekend purchase, and I like the sturdiness of the pockets and studs as a change to my jegging-like Joni Jean or River Island Tube Pants. Ripped knees just add another sexy skin flash while being tough and effortless. I have actually turned a corner with my weekend nightlife too and now actually hit the town in jeans, half because you can dress up jeans in a chic way now, and half because some nights are not worth donning a bodycon mini skirt when you have gossiping with your friends to do! I feel just as happy in what I deem as 'casual' wear now as I did in my party dresses of my Motel days. One could argue my super-tight jeans are a version of bodycon, and I still add my tan, lashes, and killer heels, but I'm cool with that haha.

October 13, 2014

Way, way, way back when, I was a youthful 20 year old at university and my makeup matched my face: glowing, plump and, due to 8 hours of lectures a week and a midday part time job, showing off at least eight hours of glorious sleep each night. Nowadays it's more like a midweek grey-ish hue that shows all too well the early morning commutes, office air-conditioning and that midweek mascara that just won't budge. I started to use my makeup to conceal and wake up my features, but forgot that in the past I added a flush of blusher to add some fun to my face! It's no fun putting heavy liner on tired eyes, but blush is actually one item that can flatter at ALL times, especially when worn high on the cheekbones.

I hadn't invested in a blusher for absolutely ages due to a fair few knocking around in my collection, but nothing to get excited about. I've been wearing bronzer and contour for around a year for my daily work face, but totally neglected how a rosy cheek can add warmth without being too girly. I never want to look too doll-like nowadays as I'm in a more corporate environment, but a beautiful highlight can have way more pay off than a heavy lip or eyeshadow at 7am. How have I neglected blush for so long?!

The blush in question is almost a dupe for my favourite and sadly limited edition MAC Redhead MSF, which saw me through my university days. Makeup has took a more neutral, sophisticated turn, but back then it was a glaze of pouty gloss, dark lids and bright cheeks, while Kim K was in her bodycon era and TOWIE was really used for style inspiration. The Body Shop Shimmer Waves in Blush is THE warm, Victoria Secret-esque glow that can never look too princess-y, but creates a warming halo effect for your cheek bones. The kind of product that I would never not use on a daily basis unless I was purposely planning a different particular look. It also layers beautifully, and a main bug bear of mine is patchy blush. I've tried light layers and I've tried blending out a considerable layer, but some products are so darn patchy on me!

And best of all I have the accompanying Face and Body brush and it's the best I have ever tried to avoid this patchy problem. I've invested in many Real Techniques brushes and I find them prickly, whereas this brush feels so silky soft that you actually want to swipe it around your face. I'm going to go back to check out their foundation brushes too as I find the orange Real Techniques one really dense and tough to sweep around, but maybe my foundations are too heavy duty.

When my Benefit Hoola runs out (I've hit pan at the moment!) I'm going to run for Essie Button's favourite Honey Bronzer from them too. Give me a product that works and lasts any day!

October 12, 2014

Well hello there! I hope you are all very well and really getting into gear for autumn. I'm still sorting my coat (I'm stalking ASOS for a discount code!!) but am feeling excited for warm drinks and Christmas time. I rounded off the summer with my trip to Milan and it was a whirlwind of a weekend! We literally didn't stop to take a breath and it went so quickly, but I did manage to record a vlog below! The first night consisted just of a night out as we sped through East Midlands airport, applied our makeup on the £19.99 RyanAir flight, and drank beer on the coach to join our London friends at the apartments for around 10pm.

Our friends had been there since the early hours so we met them at a bar and rushed to get ready to hit the first super club called Alcatraz, which literally had suspended cages with topless dancers and about 3,000 students. Sadly I am so far from being a student that the sweaty, packed out bars and swaying teenagers meant it was not a place to meet an Italian stallion or have a fashionable cocktail. Milan itself is rather similar to Birmingham in being very industrial and grey, brightened by scrawled graffiti. We danced the whole night away and while we definitely weren't drunk enough to be in a student club, it played some fun stuff and there was a hip hop dance off and a huge stage!

I brought a variety of slightly new-ish outfits and wasn't too sure where we would go for the following nights, so I went for two separates instead of a dress, which to me seems less formal. This outfit is totally dressy but in my eyes, a dress would be even more so!

This navy Topshop bralet has really seem me through 2014 and goes with every skirt or bottoms possible. I bought this white skirt in the summer from Missguided on an impulse really as it's not the most wearable thing but it does brighten a look. I don't think black suits me as much anymore so white is a fresh alternative. These Choies shoes are not the most comfortable but they aren't too bad and I love love love how they add an extra spice to any outfit.

I also have blue in my hair! I bought some of that fancy dress hairspray colour in blue and it made my hair super crunchy but lasted all holiday and kept my curls in place! Very Kylie Jenner inspired. I wonder if I could get away with it for work...

And onto the next morning, and out first day! I woke up with a heavy head and was quite surprised the 10 euro Long Island Ice Teas were that brutal, but we soon realised we all felt very groggy because in Italy you can smoke in the clubs, and none of us are smokers! When I first started clubbing it was legal in the UK too, so the memories of coming home with your clothes and hair stinking of stale smoke were not very welcome again, and despite definitely not smoking myself, I could almost taste cigarettes for the whole holiday.

We gathered the troops and went in search for our first pizza, which was harder than you would think as we were surrounded by the curse of the tourist restaurants. You know the ones with the photos of the food and laminated menus? Even in the back streets of our apartment block, we searched for a while to come across a stone baked pizzeria and took the first bite of fresh Italian pizza, mmmm!

I'm usually the organiser for the trip but this time I sat back and followed the flow of the group. I'm not sure where our apartments were but my bed sat high up a spiral staircase on a ledge, so we were almost all in the same room, but not quite! Very cool! The other gals had visited the main Milan sights the day before so we navigated our way onto the train to Lake Como, around an hour away. The steep mountains and beautiful clear water lake actually extends for miles and miles, and we marvelled at the high hills and gorgeous views.

We jumped into a few pedalos to appreciate the water but these clunky old boats really didn't go very far, and we were pedalling like crazy and not going anywhere! It may have been our imagination but we bobbed around for ages and even watched some little kids whizz past us, and some Italian boys who rode past staring with one randomly wearing a creepy surgical mask, before shouting 'We love English!!!' at us! I've never laughed so much and you can catch a glimpse in my vlog below.

We managed to make our way to shore after narrowly avoiding a huge, speedy cruise ship, and took a vertical tram high up into the hills. The view was obscured by fog but we travelled back and had a sweet meal at an outdoor restaurant, where the waiter nearly set himself on fire when torching my creme brulee.

We soon realised time was ticking on fast as we finished our meal in the dark and headed off to find the train station. We ran Rocky-style up huge marble stairs but we had missed the train anyway, so grabbed some drinks for the next one from a supermarket. It was only an hour later when we reached the Milan central station that we realised the train conductor had been sitting in our carriage all along and possibly heard all of our X-rated gossiping!

We didn't actually get back to our apartment until midnight! This is even despite the mental Italian taxi drivers. We booked a taxi for 45 minutes later and literally threw on some makeup and clothes. I was going to wear this Missguided nude skirt again with a mis-matching crop top but the matchy-matchy thing just does it for me, and I love the shape of this crop top. I did feel a little naked in this outfit, but the tan colour and suede-esque fabric is so sophisticated, and I wanted to toughen up the look with some chunky leather sandals. I also added a deep red lip as I didn't get chance to wear false lashes, and it makes a statement when time is tight!

We had researched online and read that Hollywood was the top Milan club for 'supermodels, politicians and footballers'. Well we definitely picked the wrong night as it was again a sweaty student party, and after the 25 euro entrance fee, we thought we would find more than one packed out basement room! We navigated to a space to breathe in front of the VIP section (which cost 280 euros to enter!) and took many selfie stick photos, before attempting to buy a drink at the rammed bar and realising the mirror in the girls bathroom was actually clear right through to the boys bathroom! I didn't twig until I looked a little closer at my supposed reflection and also realised a girl next to me was arguing with her boyfriend through the mirror. Wild! We left the club and were about to visit another but they all had 15+ euro entry, so we got pizza and took our tired feet home!

The Sunday was the final day for the London girls, but myself and another friend were staying one more day. We took the metro to the centre and ate more pizza, visited Sephora, and roamed a castle. The day again went so quickly as it took a long while to navigate the tube, and at one point I got lost/kidnapped!! A tassle on my kimono got caught on a man's butt button hole and I was the last to step off the metro, so my one friend spotted me and frantically tried to keep the metro doors open, while I tried to yank off the tassle and an Italian woman intervened and tried to untangle the button. Soon enough, the metro doors had to close shut, the tram departed, and I was carried away from my friends into a dark tunnel with a tube of people laughing at me! After a few moments the man was set free and I stood alone on the travelling tube, looking around on my lonesome! I did just step off at the next stop and caught an oncoming tube back in the opposite direction, but it will still always be known as the time I got lost in Milan!

More ice cream later (thank you to blogger babe Sandra for the top Milan tips!!) and we had to say goodbye to the London girls, who were super inspirational and generally totally awesome. My friends are very career-driven and it really inspired me to lean in and push forward to achieve what I want to. It was then time for just my home girl and myself to get our Sunday night wear together at our new hotel, which for me was a Zara silk plunge top and new ripped Topshop Jamie jeans, which I had been wearing all holiday. These with my Choies lace up heels felt dressy but still casual, and we took the metro to the Navigli canal area for dinner and drinks. I'm secretly one of those people that strange things just happen to, and I never expect to go anywhere without coming home with a story. I don't think my mojo is going anywhere because we met some business men visting Milan for a vending machine conference, took them to a bar known for dancing on the tables, and tried a lot of red wine, before bumping into an American basketball team who could be world famous for all I know, until one of them asked us to name a price for him to spend the night with us, and we left pretty sharpish rather horrified! Girls - no night with the rich and/or famous is worth your dignity or nude pictures posted all over the internet. Run away!

And so we awoke to the check out time of our hotel being five minutes ago, and with a few more sights to see such as the Duomo above. As we were in the central station with our suitcases, some men did try to 'help' us buy our metro tickets and generally confuse us, until we said NO very firmly and I grabbed my euro from his hand. Be VERY careful when travelling of those who will distract your attention and act bizarrely so your guard is down. They can easily rob you, or their nearby friend can, before you know what's going on.

One airport McDonalds later and we were home from our Italian adventure! I think Milan is certainly a two day city and was SO EXPENSIVE, but we let our hair down and had so much fun discovering Milano. It's also worth noting I could see over the heads of almost everyone in the club but I still have a soft spot for those pint-sized Italians and their crazy driving. I also vlogged the experience, which was my first time vlogging and my first video in a looooong time. As my photography skills are non existant, I wanted to show you all my trip in real-time and take you along with me! Enjoy!

September 30, 2014

It's already almost Wednesday and I am going away to Milan on Friday, eek! This has been the most organised I have been for a holiday - not that I have been disorganised before but I started getting things ticked off the to-do list a few weeks ago. For any random ideas like a selfie stick (omg) and getting an extra memory card so maybe I can vlog (ahhh!), I noted them down in my phone and just started crossing things off earlier than usual. These things always come around so quickly and sometimes it does feel like a lot of pressure when you build the anticipation, but I'm just feeling really excited for this trip!

I still do not have my outfits finalised though and will definitely be sorting this tomorrow evening. I definitely have things to wear but I don't know exactly what my outfits are yet, and I can only take 10kg of just hand luggage with me so I can only afford to carry what I will definitely wear. Airports this year also seem to be only allowing one clear sandwich bag of liquids. Have you see the size of that Polly Pocket bag that has to fit all makeup and toiletries, and 100% close?! I've had to chuck away may products recently while a security person looked on as I reasoned over a body lotion VS. a lipgloss. Even a deodorant takes up about a third of that mouse-size bag!

I've pulled together some current inspiration for night time looks from Tumblr. Colleen (a RAD blogger!) commented that I hadn't shared my Tumblr before recently and I realised it's so true, even though literally I'm on Tumblr evvvvery day! My night time laptop routine is emails, twitter, blogs and then Tumblr. I'm back into watching YouTube videos while I'm pottering around too, and if I ever filmed a 'Nighttime Routine', it would be SO boring! Literally just me eating dinner and then sitting on my computer or washing my hair and scrubbing off my makeup. Would my life be better if I made a posh tea in a favourite mug and lit a scented candle? Maybe!! I don't even have a favourite mug, what am I doing with my life.

So basically I spend lots of time on Tumblr to reblog images of things I want to try or buy soon, like a visul shopping/beauty list. Then I'll visit it before nights out or holidays and pin point some things I want to try. When I sit down to do my makeup before going out, I need some direction or I end up adding and adding random products and have to take it off and restart as it goes wrong! I'll often try to copy a look but as I am using my own products, it ends up being a mix of my own style and preferences.

So for the past few days I've been obsessed with a very certain lip colour in my mind, and am going to hunt it down in town before I go away. I need a matte red that's definitely not plum or pink toned and not too vampy, almost like a rosy but pigmented stain? HMM! I'll ask at MAC and then browse around for a dupe maybe. I'm feeling everything matte for this holiday and I just got a new MAC Studio Careblend powder so can make sure my skin is a seamless canvas for a deep, chunky lipstick and lots of lashes and contour. As it's Milan, I'm all about jewel tones and jewel accessories! I'm going to take my most fabulous jewellery, bags and shoes, and really go all out. My last trip to Amsterdam felt very laid back and a bit more hipster, but I'll bring out my best classy/sassy lady vibes for Milan!

Now I just need to figure out what to wear for the day time! I have actually packed away my summer things and I don't think shorts or co-ords are so appropriate for a city. I'll definitely be pulling apart my wardrobe tomorrow!

September 28, 2014

I have mentioned recently that gadgets are not a passion of mine and I begrudgingly have an extortionate iPhone 5 contract, even though the camera is pretty pants. I think a portion of my mega monthly payout is that I can upgrade whenever I want to, BUT I just got the sweetest new phone case and this baby is sticking around!

Things are getting slightly emoji crazy as I saw this 'print' on Tumblr and knew it would make for the case of dreams! I tweeted that I couldn't find a phone case I liked anywhere and Fay suggested making my own! What a genius idea - I am obsessed with Tumblr and reblog millions of pictures that I would happily paste onto my phone. I wanted something a little tongue-in-cheek though as not everything needs to be too chic and serious in life, right! I got mine from CaseApp as they have a seriously inspirational Instagram with blog-worthy set ups. I'm not one for arranging flowers and complimentary colours for my blog photos (when I get chance to take them!) but their Insta has some really clever ways of photographing the different cases.

September 26, 2014

Another day, another week gone by! I have freed up my weekend so I might do a little window shopping, where I don’t really need anything but may have a payday treat if I see something extra spesh! I am going to Milan for a long weekend on Friday too so please let me know of any recommendations or actually if you have seen any rather nice outfits in the shops right now?! I have a few things I can wear for the nights out, which luckily will be a bit dressier than many European cities we have visited, where no one really wears heels even. A major reason I look forward to nights out is because it’s a chance for me to wear anything I want to, so I’m excited to getting glammed up, despite not finding anything new to pack!

I also might get my nails done this weekend but I’m not sure whether to wait until the morning of my flight or have them a week in advance and tidy them up a little on the day. Pointed nails definitely round off when you type furiously across the day like me and can become uneven.

My latest nails are Barry M coconut; a colour I had my beady eye on for a while and could not feel satisfied without. I find more and more that during the very few chances I have to pop to Superdrug or Boots that the products I am actually after are sold out. What a pain! There’s been a Sleek Matte Lip Cream I’ve been hunting for for around a month! Frustrating to hear ‘our next delivery is xxx’ when you know you have to work all week and can’t get back until another weekend! So I discovered nailpolish.co.uk, an absolute nail polish mecca, and their home delivery is totally free so I could order my prize Coconut and also the new Almond Gelly. It's almost the same in the bottle as Matte Vanilla, which I actually added a shiny top coat before! Because polishes are small, they fit through the letterbox too so it’s a fuss-fee way to just get that polish you are after. Plus they have in stock all of the latest colours that just scream autumn. I don't often have dark nails but reds and purples are calling me. Once I have that nail polish itch, I need to scratch it!

I might have a clear section or cool design, like my last heart nails, for my holiday but for this month I opted for a classic full polish of Coconut, which is a creamy off-white - perfect if bright white is too stark and Tipp-Ex-like for you. I also had the urge for something a bit out of the box and got the 100 emoji sign on my thumbs! The guy doing my nails did think I was slightly cray cray again but definitely appreciates something different to do! They look a little bit like I am counting to 200 but those who are emoji fans get the joke! Do you remember the days of my bejeweled nails? I might revisit my nail decal (fit to burst) shoe box and see what I can find for my holiday!